A Proposal Of Sorts
by katerose13
Summary: A two-chapter story about Hiccup and Camicazi, a character from the book series. They're adults now and must face reality and what comes with being the heirs to two different tribes. Written with macchime. Own nothing. Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

Hiccup looked around for a friend or two. He'd been feeling pretty low lately, especially since Toothless had a lady friend he'd been spending his time with. "Cami? Astrid? Fishlegs? Anyone?" he called out.

"Hiccup? Hiccup?" Camicazi sheathed her sword, more than a little glad to be back on familiar turf after a successful raid. "Hello? Is _anyone_ out there?" she shouted.

Hiccup heard the sheathing of a sword and smiled. It had to be Cami. "Yeah, I'm here," he called out, looking for his blonde friend.

Cami's eyes widened when she heard that amazing, comforting voice. "Hic-_cup!_" Grinning, she started running towards the source of his voice, finally launching at him and capturing him in a hug. "Hey there! I'm back!"

Hiccup laughed as Cami jumped into his arms, and wrapped them tight around her. "I'm glad," he said, still chuckling. "How was your trip?" He set her back down on the ground, smiling at her.

Cami stood on her toes, kissing his cheek lightly before leaning back, saying, "It was pretty good, but those wandering tribes sure can pick a fight!" She didn't tell him about the small wounds hidden by her trousers and shirt, because as nice as it was for him to fuss over her once in a while, the more serious one on her thigh would cause a more…negative reaction. Beaming happily, she looked up at him. "How about you? No ruffians or anything?"

"No, no ruffians," Hiccup commented, kissing the top of her head. "But you know me, I don't go looking for trouble." He smiled at her, and took her hand. "You didn't get hurt, did you?" He looked at her with concern in his eyes.

Grinning happily, she shook her head. Knowing Hiccup, he'd probably figure out her lie sooner or later, but not now. "Do you really think that I'd let myself get hurt? Where's that trust you promised me," she teased, squeezing his hand.

Hiccup laughed. "All right," he said. "Come on, I've been busy sketching while you were gone." He led her up to his room. "I think it'd be a good idea to bathe, too, and dress the wounds I know you're hiding from me."

"But I don't have any wounds _to _hide, Hiccup! Zero! Absolutely none!" Cami continued to protest loudly until she reached his bed and sat down on it, rather gingerly. "As much as I want to see what you drew, I still say I'm _fine!_" Although, she did have to admit grudgingly, a bath sounded nice…

Hiccup noticed the way she sat down on his bed and shook his head. She was still as stubborn as she had been when he'd first met her. "I'll draw you a bath, okay? Try not to move," he said, stepping out of the room to fetch some water. He came back with a bucket in each hand. "I know you _say_ you're fine, but I don't believe you. You wouldn't back away from a fight or two."

"Or four," she muttered under her breath, crossing her arms over her chest obstinately and rolling her eyes. "Seriously, Hiccup, why do you insist on doing this _every _hell-cursed time I come back from a raid? You _know_ I'm fine!" It was rather endearing, actually, knowing that she'd return to this.

"Because I love you," Hiccup said, kissing her forehead and gesturing the tub. "It's ready. I'll be downstairs."

Cami stuck her tongue out at him as he left the room, then turned her attention to the tub with a small, fond smile. 

She'd allowed herself to soak, and now that she was dressed again, she bit her lip and rolled up her sleeves. Dumping the tell-tale red water out of Hiccup's window, she wiped her hands on her pants and began to head towards the door. "I'm done," she yelled at him.

Hiccup walked up the stairs and saw Cami standing by the window, noticing that there was a splash of water on the curtain. "Trying to hide your evidence, huh?" he asked, walking over to her. He shook his head at her. "Cami, come on. I can help you dress your wounds, if you'd just let me."

Glowering at the idiotically simple mistake she'd made, Cami stalked over to his bed and sat down. "Fine, fine, fine! Which one do you want to get first?" She closed her eyes, sulking. One of the worst wounds was on her leg, so she lifted it up to roll up her pants leg. "There's that, and then there's scratches all over."

Hiccup looked at her leg, and grabbed some dressing cloths from a cabinet nearby. "I wish you would just told me before you took your bath," he said, gently dabbing at the gash. He wrapped a cloth around it and secured it with a piece of string. "All right, was this the worst?"

Cami grunted, gritting her teeth as the cleansing solution touched the gaping wound. "Y-yeah, it was, I think…can you check my back for me? I got hit there a few times, but I don't know how bad." The Viking had learned a lesson: six Wanderers at a time were too much when your backup was…out of commission.

"Turn over," Hiccup commanded, waiting for to flip over and preparing the dressings again. She flipped over and he pulled her tunic up, inhaling sharply when he saw the damage. "Cami…"

On her stomach, Cami grabbed for his pillow, squeezing it tightly and refusing to even attempt to look. "That bad, huh? Well…just do your job, okay? Get it over with." Burying her face in the pillow, she prepared herself for the inevitable pain.

Hiccup gingerly cleaned each cut and pulled Cami up. "I'm going to wrap this around you, okay?" he said, holding out the bandage. "Keep your back to me."

She allowed Hiccup to move her to her knees, hugging the pillow to her chest and staring at the bed frame in front of her with watery eyes. "Okay. Go for it. I'll be fine."

Hiccup proceeded to wrap the bandage around Cami's thin torso, noting that she winced when he pulled too tight. He finished up and tied it off against itself. He pulled her tunic back down gently and removed the pillow from her tight grasp. "There," he said gently. "That should be better." He kissed her shoulder and rubbed her arms.

Cami exhaled slowly, closing her eyes and leaning back onto his chest. Tilting her head back, she cracked an eye open and smiled faintly at Hiccup. "It is," she murmured happily.

"I figured," Hiccup said. "What happened, anyway? I'm sorry I couldn't come with you this time."

Cami shook her head, sleepy from both the events of the raid and her bath. "If you came, you probably would have died pretty quickly…anyway, we attacked a wandering tribe, got some good stuff, no fatalities…rest of the girls went on back to camp…"

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Your faith in me is, as always, astounding," he said. He noticed she was sleepy. "Wanna take a nap? You can sleep here while I finished up my sketches. I'm working on a new design for an invention."

Cami pulled herself up, wincing slightly as she turned and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Nope, you're staying. You're too warm to go off and work," she stated matter-of-factly. "Please? _Then_ you can go off and work again."

Hiccup smiled at her. "All right," he said. She had a point. Work could wait, since it was all he'd been doing since she'd left. "Come on." He laid back against his bed, opening his arms up for the blonde Burglar.

Cami's tired eyes lit up as she moved to snuggle up next to Hiccup's chest. She really was lucky, she thought to herself as she lazily traced an invisible pattern on his shirt. "I hope it's like this later," she murmured, half to herself.

"What do you mean?" Hiccup asked as he trailed a hand up and down her arm. He was getting sleepy himself; he'd stayed up pretty late the night before, working on that new project he'd mentioned.

Cami pinked slightly, her gaze moving away guiltily. "I-if we…y'know…" Her voice dropping significantly, she shifted closer to Hiccup, straining to reach closer to his ear. "If we…get married or the such, I mean…"

Hiccup laughed. "Never thought you'd want this," he said, still chuckling. "But I promise it'll stay like this if you want it to, Cami. Now, go to sleep." He smiled as he thought of their married life. True, he'd been thinking about it, but he wasn't sure if Cami was ready…or if she wanted it.

Cami blinked slowly, smiling contentedly. "I'd like that," she remarked as she turned onto her other side and wrapped Hiccup's arms around her. She felt safe there, almost more so than when she had a sword in both hands. "I love you, Hiccup," the blonde mumbled as she closed her eyes and started drifting off to sleep.

Hiccup smiled and hugged her tighter to him. "I love you too, Cami," he whispered. "Sweet dreams."


	2. Chapter 2

_This part is really short. I'm sorry about that. As always, we own nothing. Please read and review!_

Cami's eyes fluttered open. She didn't know how long it had been, only that time had passed and that her injuries were stiff. Rolling over, she blinked in surprise at the sight of Hiccup next to her. She untangled her torso and waist from his arms, then leaned over to brush hair out of his face, kissing his forehead and waiting for him to wake up.

Hiccup felt Cami move, but didn't open his eyes until after she'd kissed his forehead. "Hey," he said sleepily, cracking open his eyes.

Cami smiled affectionately, flicking his forehead. "Morning, there. Ready to get up?" She made as if to get up and out of bed, but decided against it, stretching where she was instead.

"Not really," he said, rubbing his face. "How long were we asleep? My dad is probably wondering where I am." He ran a hand through his hair.

Cami's expression froze as she turned to Hiccup, not totally awake yet. "Oh yeah…you still live with your dad, don't you?" She fell back onto the bed next to him with a sigh, holding her hands out above her. "That sucks…"

Hiccup had to laugh. "No, but I do have to report to him every morning," he replied. "As dragon-keeper. Hang on, you can stay here. I'll run out and report, and I'll be back to make us some breakfast."

Cami rolled onto her stomach, groaning. "That sucks worse," she snickered quietly. "Daddy still has to watch his little Hiccup…I'll be up when you get back. Check those bandages when you return, okay?"

"Hey, it's my job," Hiccup said grouchily. "Yeah, I will." He tugged on a new shirt and left to find his dad.

Cami waved sarcastically at his retreating figure before rolling around a bit more on the bed. Finally, she decided to get up and sharpen her weapons while waiting for Hiccup to return.


	3. Chapter 3

Hiccup made his way back to his hut, where he hoped Cami was still waiting. His daily encounter with his father was the same as always. Boring report on how the dragon training was coming, complete with sighs about how Hiccup still hadn't found a suitable wife, and thus wasn't ready to be chief, which caused even more grumbles. He stepped inside and leaned against a wall, running a hand through his hair.

Camicazi pressed herself up against the other side of the room, counting on the shadows to hide her figure. She'd eventually made it downstairs, where she'd been planning on finding some sort of meal. Until Hiccup had walked in, of course. Now, she was just waiting for him to get that completely disconnected expression he so often had when thinking before pouncing.

Hiccup sighed heavily and looked up, heading into the kitchen area to start making Cami some breakfast, assuming she was still there of course. "Cami?" he called. "I'm making breakfast. What do you want?" He hoped she wouldn't be able to hear the depressed, dejected tone his voice had.

Cami frowned, holding in a sigh. This _hadn't_ been what she'd expected for him to be like when he finally came back. Propelling herself from the wall with a foot, she launched forward and grabbed him around his waist. "Oy. Hiccup. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just the usual encounter with Stoick the Vast," Hiccup replied. Damn. She had heard the tone. "What do you want for breakfast? Fish or limpets?" He had a feeling she'd want fish, since no one in their right mind preferred limpets.

"Fish. Definitely fish. But seriously," she prodded, "You don't usually sound _this_ depressed after talking with Daddy dearest!" If he didn't tell her, she'd eventually make him. She didn't know how at the moment, but she could come up with something quickly enough if she had to.

"He's going to start finding me a wife soon," Hiccup said, knowing Cami would have forced the information out of him sooner or later. "Apparently I'm not fit to be a chief if I haven't got a woman next to me. I don't know how to tell him about you without starting a war." He knew she would probably be angry that he still hadn't told his dad about his Bog Burglar girlfriend.

Planting her feet, Cami made Hiccup turn around to face her with a scowl on her face. "What the _hell,_ Hiccup? Why would he have to _find_ you someone?" She knew he hated the action, but she reached up and yanked on his collar. "Hiccup…"

Gods, he hated when she pulled on his collar. "Ease up, Cami," Hiccup said. "It's not exactly normal for a Bog Burglar to fall in love, is it? Can you blame him for wanting me to marry a Hooligan? Gods, I'll go and talk to him now-"

"Talk to me about what, Hiccup?" Stoick said, standing in the doorway of Hiccup's tiny hut. "I've known about Camicazi for a while, son. You can't hide an affair here in the village." Hiccup stared at his father and then slowly looked at Cami.

"Then you know I want to marry her," Hiccup said, eyes fixed on Cami's face.

Cami froze at the sudden addition of Stoick to the fray, mouth gaping as her retort to Hiccup was cut off. Her grip on his collar loosened as she watched the exchange between father and son. At Hiccup's sudden confession of sorts, she simply began to ramble in an attempt to cover up her confusion.

"It's stuff like this that keep Bog-Burglars from falling in love, besides the fact that without something like it there wouldn't be any of us in the first place and oh well this makes no sense so would one of you two _idiots _just frickin' _explain _it to me?"

She searched Hiccup's face frantically for some sort of answer. "This…isn't a joke, is it?"

"No, Cami, I'm not joking," Hiccup said firmly. He turned to his dad. "I'm not marrying a Hooligan. I get her or I don't marry anyone."

"Son," Stoick began. "I-you know I'll have to discuss it with the Elders."

"Discuss away, dad," Hiccup rebounded. "But I'm telling you I won't do it." Stoick stared at his son.

"You'll make a fine chief someday, Hiccup."

Hiccup turned back to Cami, his expression apologetic. "I meant to talk to you about it first," he said, hanging his head.

"You're damn lucky I love you," Cami muttered as she stomped across the room to shove the current chief out of Hiccup's house. "Not really all that sorry, mister, but you're leaving for a while so I can have a chat with your _son." _Ignoring Stoick's protests, she drove him out the door and slammed the door on him, then turned around and slid down to the floor.

"Hiccup, what the heck just _happened_?"

"I guess I sort of proposed. You can say no, Cami. It wasn't fair of me to spring that on you," Hiccup said, sitting down in front of her. "I meant it, I won't marry anyone else. I'll just be the first chief without a wife or heirs, or I'll give it to Snotlout since he wants it so badly. Honestly, I don't really care." He shrugged. He'd never really cared about being chief. He just wanted to spend time with the dragons, training them.

"That was a sweet way to do it," Cami mumbled. "Better than writing a love letter and being _forced_ to marry, y'know?" She looked up at him, smiling with teary eyes. "What _is_ it with a boy like _you_ and thinking that the great Camicazi will say no?" she asked. The problem of their both being heirs of two completely different tribes rose to the top of her mind, but she shoved it away for later.

Hiccup shook his head. He could see a problem with this situation. Cami was a Bog-Burglar. He was Hairy Hooligan. They were heirs to two different tribes. "The Great Camicazi says yes, huh?" Hiccup teased, pushing those thoughts out of his mind as he pulled Cami into his lap.

"The Great Camicazi says yes," Cami confirmed for him, allowing Hiccup to move her. Picking up his arms to wrap them around her, she beamed up at him. "Thanks for not being all mushy and gushy about it, though."

"We're Vikings. We don't do mushy," Hiccup said proudly, mocking the tone his dad used so often. He kissed her forehead. "I'm glad you said yes." He knew they'd eventually have to deal with the whole "different tribe" issue but for now, he wanted to just be happy.

Cami laughed at Hiccup's impersonation of his father, wrinkling her nose. "So this isn't considered mushy? We've had more kisses in the past twelve-ish hours than in the past two weeks!" So what if she'd been gone almost the whole time, her point was still being made. "To be honest, if you hadn't asked, _I_ was going to! Boys are so _indecisive_!"

Hiccup rolled his eyes at her. He'd missed her. "Boys are indecisive? Sheesh," he said. "At least we know when we're ready for the next big step. If I remember right, a certain Burglar took what was it? Almost a month before she agreed to be my girlfriend?" He tapped her nose gently and cradled her in his arms as he stood up. "Besides, you know I'm only kissing you this much because I might have missed having you around."

Cami shoved her bottom lip out in a pout. "It was _not_ a month," she huffed. To be fair, it had taken a good deal longer than that. It was a fond memory, what with Hiccup alternating between avoiding her and asking her constantly if she'd agreed or not. Raising a brow, she teased, "So if there wasn't any reason to miss me, there wouldn't be any more of this?"

"Anymore of what," Hiccup asked, feigning innocence. He kissed her cheek. "This?" He kissed the other one. "Or this?" He paused a moment before throwing caution and care to the wind and leaned in to kiss her full on the lips. He pulled back after a moment. "Or that?"

Her face heating up rapidly, Cami rolled her eyes with some effort. "No, you idiot, I meant stuff like this and this!" She tugged on his hair and pinched his cheek in accordance. "Maybe this." She flicked his forehead gently. "But to be completely honest, I much prefer _this._" Unabashedly following his lead, she laced her fingers around his neck and pulled him down for another kiss on the lips, drawing away after a few moments.

Hiccup winced as she pulled his hair and pinched him. But when she kissed him, he was incredibly surprised. Hiccup blushed fiercely. Only Cami could make him blush so deeply. "Uhm," he coughed. "Let's, uh, let's eat." He set her down on her feet and turned back to the breakfast he'd been fixing before they'd been interrupted by his father.

Cami smiled softly, cupping her burning cheeks in the palms of her hands before stepping behind Hiccup to peer around him. "Sounds good," she commented as he began to cook. "Smells good too. When we're married, _you're_ staying home and cooking. What're you making, anyway?" He'd also be watching whatever kids they had, she noted to herself. However the tribal conflict worked out, there would still need to be an heir.

"And I suppose you think I'll stay home with the kids?" he mocked. "I'm no housewife, Cami." He finished up cooking and handed her a wooden plate. "Here. Food's ready."

"Well, I definitely don't think I'm good at that sorta thing." Cami accepted the plate and walked off to the table, smelling it as she sat down. "Again, what is it?"

"Mackerel," Hiccup said over his shoulder as he fixed his own plate. "Toothless caught some the other day." he turned around and paused. Cami was in his house. Feeling comfortable. Looking natural. He smiled and started walking again, heading for the open seat at the table.

"Tastes great," Cami cheered after taking a large bite. Grinning apologetically at him once he sat down, she shrugged. "Shoulda waited, but you know how it is." Taking another bite, she mused over how things would change after the events of that morning. "Oh, yeah, you need to check those bandages again."

Hiccup nodded, swallowing the bite he'd just taken. "I'll do that when we're done," he said. There was a pause as he tried to figure out a good way to approach the issue on his mind. "What-will you be in…trouble? That is, won't your chieftainess be angry?"

"Mom? I dunno, really." Cami leaned back in her seat precariously, stretching. "Probably. I don't know how I'll deal with it, though." Her brow furrowed as she remembered something from only minutes ago. "Your dad _did_ approve, right? I probably shoved him out the door too fast to notice."

"He wouldn't have been so calm if he didn't," Hiccup replied. He looked at Cami curiously. "Stick your head out there. He could be listening."

Cami sputtered, almost falling. "H-he could be _what?_" Scrambling to her feet, she ran over to the window next to the door and stood on her toes to look out. "No, I don't _see_ any redheaded creepers…"

Hiccup stood up, stretching, and walked to the window. "No, he's not there," he affirmed. "He probably got offended and is heading off to start a war now." He grinned at Cami, to let her know he was joking. Hopefully she got the hint.

Scowling, Cami kicked at the wall after quickly winking back. They might as well have a bit of fun with this. "Just like him, going off to pick a fight with my mother, just like always! It never gets old!" She whirled around to point at Hiccup, a giant grin replacing the scowl. "I shall join my dear mother, and I shall expect you to join me on pain of housekeeping!"

Hiccup shrank back from her in mock fear. "Not the housekeeping!" he said. He leaned up, towering over her slightly. "Miss Viking, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to put your dirty shoes outside. Wouldn't want to stain the freshly cleaned floors. And would you like the freshest trout for dinner? I've already got it cooking." Hiccup took Cami's hand and spun her around in a circle, laughing.

Cami laughed in exhilaration as they spun around, trying to retort. "Not until y- no thank you, sir!" Finally, she pulled away from Hiccup and steadied herself against the wall. "I am the mistress of this house, and I shall leave my shoes on as I please!" Halfway through, she collapsed into a fit of giggles, which quickly turned into coughs.

Hiccup was at her side in an instant. "Cami?" he asked with concern. "Come on. Let's change those bandages." He grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently.

Cami nodded, squeezing back as the barrage of coughs persisted. Pulling on his arm and then pushing on his shoulders, she got to her feet and smiled as bravely as possible. "Then we'll finish breakfast," she stated weakly.

"Forget breakfast," he said as he led her up the stairs. "You were almost done anyway." He motioned for her to sit down on the bed and grabbed the bandages and cleaning solutions. He rolled her pant leg up and gently pulled the bandage off. "This one doesn't look so bad. Let's see the others."

Cami did as ordered, covering her mouth as she continued to cough. Thankfully, it had slowed down a lot, but it was still worrisome to her. Once Hiccup had inspected her leg, she pulled off her shirt, still keeping the sleeves over her arms and thankful for binding. "Are those…is my back okay," she inquired quietly.

Hiccup carefully undid the binding, which was damp from sweat and he could see spots where the cuts had bled through. He tossed the dirty bandage in the corner and set about cleaning the wounds again. "You're fine," he said gently. "Just a little bleeding through. Not much." Hiccup started wrapping a new bandage around her slight torso. He would check the leg again in the evening.

Cami exhaled, relaxing visibly. "Good…you scared me last night." She shrugged her shirt back on over her head before turning to Hiccup and smiling crookedly at him. "I didn't mean to get beat up and cause all this trouble, I hope you know."

"You say that every time," Hiccup replied smiling. He was glad she seemed to be doing better. "Maybe I'll start believing you sometime."

"Oh, so you _don't_ believe me, _do_ you?" Cami laughed, breaking into a soft cough at the end. She rushed to reassure him, "Nothing to worry about now, we can go back, I guess?"

"Nuh uh," Hiccup said sternly. "You're staying in bed. I'm bringing my work up here and you're going to rest. I don't like the sound of that cough." He stood up and headed for the door. "I'll be back in a minute."

Cami continued protesting as he left the room, and not quietly, either. "C'mon, Hiccup, there's stuff to do today!" When her pleas fell on deaf ears, she huffed, and marched downstairs, where she declared, "I am _not_ staying up there, and there is _nothing_ you can do to make me!"

"Cami," Hiccup said in a low voice, turning around. "Get back upstairs. You need time to rest. Only for today." He looked at her sternly. Sometimes he had to be forceful with her, something he didn't like to do.

Cami glowered, setting her jaw and crossing her arms over her chest stubbornly. "No one tells a Bog-Burglar what to do, and much less the Great Camicazi!" She wasn't quite sure whether she was protesting to avoid a bed-ridden day, or whether she was just trying to get on Hiccup's nerves.

"And you think a Hooligan is gonna sit by and let you do what you want? Go upstairs, Cami. It's just one day," Hiccup practically growled at her. He hated having to be this way with her, preferring to be gentle and soothing. He wasn't your usual Viking.

"Yes, I was, actually." Breaking out into a sneaky grin, she held out her hand. "But since you've been so _convincing,_" Cami paused for dramatic effect. "I'm not going up until you come with me. Got it?"

Hiccup shook his head. "Fine," he said, grabbing his sketches and prototypes. "Come on." He balanced the gear in one hand, while holding out the other.

Cami grabbed onto his hand and walked upstairs. "Hiccup, what're you working on?" she asked as she climbed onto his bed, not bothering to get under covers. "Is that what you've been working on while I was gone, or what?"

"It's a new cannon for my dad to use," Hiccup said. "He wanted something that wouldn't backfire as much." He showed her the sketches. "Yeah, this is all I did while you were off doing fun stuff." He smiled at her.

Cami took it from his hands, inspecting it. "So…why would he want one of _those_ if you could just rush into battle with swords and rackets and noise?" She looked at him, not understanding the logic. "I mean…that really doesn't make sense."

"They're for the ships," Hiccup explained. He picked up another sketch. "I've been modifying the axes too. Make them lighter, but still just as deadly."

"The ships, huh. And what about the axes?" Cami snatched that one from his grasp as well, peering closely at it. "Looks good, but you need to work on swords next. Maybe daggers too! Also-" Cutting off, she grinned at Hiccup. "They're great!"

Hiccup chuckled. "I'll get here eventually," he said. "Aren't you supposed to be resting?" He looked at her, eyebrow raised. "Or can you not rest unless I'm actually in the bed with you?"

Cami stuck her tongue out at him before looking away in an offended manner. "Of _course_ I can, it's just that it's _boring_ to just _sit_ here all day, which you're probably going to make me do, and besides…" She trailed off, pinking slightly. "I like it, okay?"

Hiccup felt torn. On the one hand, he really needed to finish the sketches. But he wasn't exactly on the best terms with his dad lately, so he almost wanted to make the old fart wait longer. On the other hand, he wanted nothing more than to curl up with Cami on the bed. It was clear who was the more…romantic of the two. "All right," Hiccup said. "I'll come over there. If you fall asleep before I do, though, I'm getting up to finish the sketches. There's no point in me staying there if I'm not gonna fall asleep."

"Fall asleep? Fall…_asleep_? Who said anything about _sleeping_?" Cami scoffed. After all, it had been less than two hours since she'd gotten out of bed for the first time, ad she had no plans on doing it again. Scratching at her lower back, right below where the bandage ended, she looked up at Hiccup, almost sulkily. "If you're _really_ gonna make me stay in bed all day, I'm going to get comfortable. Got it?"

"You'll want to fall asleep," Hiccup said, as he knelt down on the bed. "Turn around. I'll give you a shoulder rub, to help you relax a little. You're probably tense from your trip." He twirled a finger, motioning for her to turn.

Having stood up and lifted her hair off of her back, Cami glared dryly at him. "Lemme get a little more comfortable. This stuff is really hot, _especially_ if I ever get under the blankets!" She shrugged off her waistcoat and rolled up her sleeves and pants before sitting back on the bed and kicking off her boots. Scooting back to where Hiccup waited, she looked at him expectantly. "Ready?"

Hiccup smiled. "Ready when you are, oh great one," he said, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Damn, Cami, you're really tense." He pushed into the knots in her muscles forcefully.

"Oh great one. I like tha-" Her statement was cut off as her face contorted at the new pressure on her back. When she next spoke, her voice was at least an octave higher. "Comes from fighting, I guess?"

"Sorry," Hiccup muttered as his fingers worked at the knots. "Probably. How's your posture when you fight, I wonder?" He eased up on the amount of force, but continued to rub the same spots, determined to get the knots out.

"Same as always," Cami managed to squeak out in an interval between the pain. A good kind of pain, to be sure, but it was still pain. "Yo-you've seen how I fight, right?"

Hiccup shook his head. "I think I've told you that you need to hold your sword differently," he said. "No wonder you've got so many knots in your shoulder." He felt one of the knots give way under his thumb. "How'd that feel?"

"Well, how am I supposed to do that? I can't just go back on years of traini-" Cami's body froze up for a second before relaxing and looking at Hiccup from the subsequent slouch, smiling lazily. "Damn, Hiccup…"

Hiccup chuckled. "I knew you would," he said, beginning work on the other knot. "I know you can't, but you should at least try. You wouldn't be so tense after fighting." He tried to be a bit gentler with this knot, but not so gentle that it wouldn't come out.

Cami's body was already pretty slack, so when this particular knot came out, she dropped her head and allowed it to loll to the side. "I'm not usually _this_ tense," she pointed out. "But maybe if I could just go downstairs and outside…you could show me what you mean!" Smiling winningly, she looked back at Hiccup hopefully.

Hiccup cocked his head to the side. "Nice try, Cami," he said. He laid down on the bed, putting his arms behind his head. "Rest today. Train tomorrow. I know training is oddly important to you girls, but you're not doing it today. Let your wounds heal."

Cami frowned, stretching before collapsing onto her back. "Fine, fine. Then tomorrow, you're showing me what you mean! Maybe next time, I won't end up like this!" Rolling onto her stomach and propping her head up on her arms, she looked to Hiccup. "Then, this won't happen again!"

"Cami," Hiccup said, rolling his eyes. "You'll always get in a fight. You don't back down. Bog Burglars don't back down, right?" He smiled affectionately at her.

"Right," Cami chirped as she reached one arm out and took his hand in her own. "But if you _helped_ me, then I won't get as beat up next time!"

Hiccup propped himself up on one elbow. "You know I'm not much help in battle." He looked down at their intertwined fingers.

Cami smiled, pressing her palm against his. "You're plenty of help, Hiccup. You look at things from different perspectives than the rest of us, you come up with new, ingenious ideas. You do so much you don't even realize." Drawing her eyes away from his face to their hands, her voice took on a fond, almost wistful tone. "You'll never understand just how much you mean to me."

"Careful, Cami," Hiccup teased. "Someone might get the idea that you like a boy." He looked up at her face and grinned. He was blushing slightly from her praises. "I didn't know you cared that much. Or that you paid so much attention to me."

"Well, they'd have the wrong idea." Pushing up to move up the bed closer to Hiccup, she fell down next to him and kissed him on the nose. "I don't like a boy," she said with a little smile, blushing furiously. "I love a man. And that's something that one can't do without paying attention. How else would you know how I fight?"

"We've been friends for years, Cami," Hiccup said. "Of course I paid attention to how you fight. I mean, I may have paid extra attention…" He chuckled, seeing her pink cheeks.

"Exactly," Cami said after planting another kiss on his cheek. "It's just the little things like that, isn't it?" She rolled onto her back, laughing quietly to herself. "After all, this was…I never expected things to turn out like this."

"I know what you mean," Hiccup said. "I mean, I think I figured it out before you did." He smiled down at her and kissed her forehead.

"Yeah, you did," Cami laughed. "If you hadn't told me what you felt, I probably would have never understood myself what was going on. Not for a while, anyway." She smiled as he kissed her forehead, snuggling down onto the bed. "Thank you."

"For what?" Hiccup asked, settling down on the bed beside her, pulling her into his arms.

"For everything." Cami tried to push away, protesting, "You're just _trying_ to make me sleepy, aren't you?"

"No," Hiccup chuckled. "If you're sleepy, it's your own fault." He laughed as she tried to pull away. "Come on. You said yesterday that I'm warm. You know you want me to keep you warm." He smiled.

"So you _are,_" Cami muttered as she settled down in his arms. "You're an idiot, you know that, right? Feeding me, getting me warm, just so you can get me in bed and you can go back to work!" Blinking heavily, she tugged on a strand of his hair. "It's not gonna work…"

"Uh, huh," Hiccup said, brushing hair out of her face. "Sure. Keep telling yourself that. I'm not going to go back to work. If I promise not to, will you rest?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

Cami puffed up her cheeks, thinking about it. Finally, she lifted a hand slightly, pinky extended. "You promise?"

Hiccup smiled, curling his pinky around hers. "Promise," he said.

Cami reclaimed her hand with a smile of her own. "You'd better be right there when I wake up," she murmured. "Been doing a lot of sleeping today…" She snuggled up to his chest, closing her eyes.

Hiccup hugged her tightly and put his chin on top of her head. He wasn't tired, but he was willing to stay here since Cami really asked for very little by way of romantic gestures. He knew she enjoyed being held. After about an hour, he felt his eyes dropping until he closed them and fell asleep.


End file.
